Home • "Ask the Dog" •  Did You Know? • Crosby Lost & Found
About Us •  Privacy Policy • Comics

Previcox Emails

Paws across page

Dixie_Lab

"Dixie"
From: Nick and Ami
Sent: Tuesday, April 29, 2008 7:03 PM
Subject: Previcox- Dixie's Biopsy results
(see:"Dixie" Thursday, April 03, 2008)

Hi Mel,

Dixie's biopsy results are in and they prove that Dixie did not have pre-existing conditions. No cancerous cell were found ....not even on a cellular level. Although I am going to include details from the report I will explain it in my own words first.

The Previcox apparently starts first by forming ulcers on the stomach and as more Previcox is administered it becomes ulcer upon ulcer until the stomach acids (full of Previcox) begin to leak out. It seams it first attacks the kidneys and liver. Then it begins to destroy all the protective membranes that are protecting all of the other organs. In the end it makes its final attack on the heart.

I have noticed several of the e-mails where people were told "your pet died of heart failure" or "your pet died of liver and/or kidney failure". Well sure they did and it was most likely caused by the Previcox. Merial knows this ....it's in their side effects section that our vets are not legally required to provide to us.

I also discovered this weekend that although for six years I have used Revolution for all three of my pets, in January of 2008 my husband went into our vets office and asked for a six month supply of Revolution for Dixie. When he was given a six month supply of HeartGuard and a six month supply of Frontline, he questioned this and they said "Oh its just better".

Because I had at one time used HeartGuard and Frontline we just used it. How convenient is it that both of these products are put out by Merial.......I'm furious. This is a perfect example of how some vets are apparently just in it for the money or free supply's from the drug companies.

I took the online survey at Previcox.com and Dixie was not a candidate for Previcox, it was needlessly and carelessly prescribed. My vet said she prescribed it to Dixie so that "she could recover pain free from her surgery after being on the table for so long." The heart monitor was on for seven minutes. Dixie did not have arthritis....she did not need PREVICOX!

Here are the biopsy results.

BIOPSY WORD FOR WORD COMMENT:

The site of perforation was not identified in this sample (despite additional sections). There is focal necrosis of the mucosa and evidence of peritonitis on the serosal surface of the intestine and stomach. There is no evidence of neoplasia in the samples examined.

MICROSCOPIC FINDINGS:

    1. SMALL INTESTINE: Focal mucosal necrosis and neutrophilic peritonitis

    2. SMALL INTESTINE: Mild lymphoplasmacytic and eosinophilic enteritis

    3. STOMACH: Mild lymphoplasmacytic gastritis and neutrophilic peritonitis

    4. PANCREAS: No significant findings

 Thank you for having this site. I noticed the updates including photos. It looks great!

Ami

    Dixie

"Dixie"
From: Nick and Ami 
Sent: Thursday, April 03, 2008 9:30 PM

Dixie Our 10 year old yellow lab Dixie died at noon yesterday (April 2nd) from the same drug. She went in to have a benign tumor removed from an eyelid on Wednesday March 26th (this procedure had been done 2 or 3 times over the years) and was given Previcox and antibiotics.

I administered the drug once daily starting last Wednesday (March 26th) in the afternoon, thru Tuesday (April 1st).

After my wife and I left for work on Tuesday (April 1st) Dixie got sick and the care taker for my grandmother noticed something was wrong. I got home at 5 and immediately called the vets office which prescribed the medicine and was assured (after I asked about the medicines) that there was no possible way she was having a reaction to the medicine.
 
She has had around 5-6 seizures over the past 4 years and everyone thought it was a seizure just not wearing off as quickly as the previous ones. I let it go until 7pm when it was obvious she was in serious distress.

We went to an emergency vet clinic and as soon as the vet heard the word Previcox she looked alarmed. The blood test showed Dixie's kidneys were in trouble, but hopefully it wouldn't be fatal, we would wait until morning to see our vet.

Overnight she went down hill progressively. Wednesday morning (April 2nd) the vet we saw in the emergency clinic (we didn't go back to "our" vet) did x-rays, ultrasound, IV's and everything else in the world to help. She was trying to get Dixie stable enough to operate and fix the hole (she was convinced of what happened), but couldn't get her stabilized.

After Dixie passed she asked to do an autopsy to confirm her fears. Previcox had eaten a hole in her stomach, inflamed her intestines, and completely ruined her kidneys, pancreas, etc.... She died a slow and painful death.

She was fine, even went on a 3 mile walk Sunday (March 30th and again early Tuesday (April 2nd) morning. But 5 1/2 days into taking Previcox once she got sick it was too late. The new vet had been optimistic up until her death that even with a rupture she could be saved. After the autopsy she looked shocked and everyone in the office was crying. She informed us that nothing could have been done even if we had brought her in at the first sign of illness, that the drug literally ate holes in her organs.

Here is the kicker. I have never had the vet do extra blood work prior to anesthesia but I did this time. On Wednesday (March 26th) before the tumor removal a full blood panel was drawn and all of her blood work was, and I quote the vet, "As good as it gets for a ten year old lab".

There is no way that there was a prior condition. After reading your story it sounds like you have dealt with this in great detail. Is there anything that you can suggest we do? We really need to get this out there. I wish I had searched this drug on line before  I ever gave it to Dixie.

What a hard lesson to learn. My husband and I do not have kids, we've lost our best friend.

Nick & Ami